Politics Media: Israel flies attacks in north-east Lebanon

According to media reports, the Israeli armed forces have flown air strikes on the north-east of Lebanon. Several areas in the Bekaa Plain and around the city of Baalbek were hit, reported the Hezbollah-affiliated television station Al-Majadin. The television station MTV reported at least ten air strikes in Baalbek and the surrounding area. A burning building could be seen on a video that is said to be from the village of Duris.

According to Israeli media reports, Baalbek is considered a stronghold of the Shiite militia Hezbollah. The region has already been bombed several times by the Israeli air force since the escalation began at the end of last month. According to the Israeli armed forces, they have repeatedly attacked positions of the pro-Iranian militia. For its part, Hezbollah continues to fire rockets at Israel. According to the Israeli military, around 115 missiles were fired at Israel from Lebanon on Monday.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced that he would continue to fight Hezbollah hard throughout Lebanon. In a possible retaliatory strike against Iran, however, he wants to concentrate on military installations and spare the nuclear and oil facilities, according to a report in the "Washington Post". Netanyahu is therefore likely to meet the expectations of the US government.

Israeli military: Hezbollah's underground command center discovered

According to the military, Israeli ground troops discovered an underground Hezbollah command center in southern Lebanon. The complex was used by the elite Radwan force, the armed forces announced. Weapons, ammunition and motorcycles were found there. According to the military, the underground complex was designed so that Radwan units could equip themselves there and then infiltrate Israeli territory on foot or on motorcycles. One Radwan fighter was killed when the complex was discovered.

Head of mission: UN peacekeepers in Lebanon hold their positions

Despite the Israeli request to withdraw, the soldiers of the UN observer mission in Lebanon (Unifil) are to continue their work for the time being. "The decision has been taken that Unifil will hold all its positions for the time being, even though it has been ordered by the Israeli forces to withdraw from its positions near the border," said UN peacekeeping chief Jean-Pierre Lacroix. In the fighting between the Israeli armed forces and Hezbollah, the blue helmets have come under fire several times in recent days, injuring at least four soldiers. The UN mission has been monitoring the border area between Israel and Lebanon for decades. More than 10,000 UN soldiers from more than 50 countries are involved, including the German Armed Forces.

UN Security Council criticizes attacks on blue helmet soldiers in Lebanon

Following the repeated shelling of UN peacekeepers' positions in Lebanon (Unifil), the UN Security Council has expressed concern about the safety of the blue helmets stationed there. "We call on all parties to respect the safety of Unifil personnel and facilities," said Swiss UN Ambassador Pascale Baeriswyl, Acting President of the Security Council, on behalf of all 15 members. "We recall that UN peacekeepers and UN properties must never be the target of attacks." In view of the fighting between the Israeli armed forces and Hezbollah, the UN Security Council also expressed its concern about civilian casualties, the destruction of infrastructure and the increasing number of internally displaced persons. "We call on all parties to respect international humanitarian law," said Security Council President Baeriswyl.

Report: Israel wants to spare nuclear and oil facilities in retaliation against Iran

According to a report, Israel wants to concentrate its planned retaliatory strike against Iran on military facilities and spare its nuclear and oil installations. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has informed the US government of this, the "Washington Post" newspaper reported, citing two officials familiar with the matter. Two weeks ago, Iran's Revolutionary Guards fired around 200 ballistic missiles at the Jewish state. Israel then announced its intention to retaliate. US President Biden had made it clear that he would not support an Israeli attack on Iranian nuclear facilities. According to analysts, an attack on oil facilities could drive up energy prices, while an attack on nuclear facilities could trigger a further escalation and drag the USA into the conflict. Netanyahu's plan to only attack military facilities was greeted with relief in Washington.